Signal-lantern.



C. A. THOMPSON & D. PIERCE.

SIGNAL LANTERN.

APPLIOATION'I'ILED MAR. 26, 1912.

Patented Aug. 20, 1912.

UNITE STATES PATENT ()FFTC CHARLES AMBROSE THOMPSON, OF RELAY, AND DAVID PIERCE, 01? ELKRIDGE, MARYLAND.

SIGNAL-LANTERN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1912.

Application filed March 26, 1912. Serial No. 686,357.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, CHARLES A. THOMP- SON and DAVID Prnnon, citizens of theUnited States, residing at Relay, in the county of Baltimore and State of Maryland, and Elkridge, in the county of Howard and State of Maryland, respectively, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signal-Lanterns; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates to signal lanterns and more especially to the type of signal lantern described in our prior Patent No. 994,890, dated June 13, 1911, the objects of the present invention being to improve and simplify the construction and arrangement of the oil burning mechanism and electric light supporting devices, whereby these parts may be utilized at will to better advantage in what has now come to be known as a standard signal lantern, and within which there is comparatively little space for shifting the parts.

As in the lantern of the prior patent above referred to, the present invention contemplates a lantern adapted for an electric light and an oil flame, either of which may be utilized as the source of radiant energy, and the oil pot reflector and other essential parts, including the electric light holder, are adapted to be located within the'lantern at all times, but provision is made whereby either the filament of the electric light or the oil flame may be brought to the focal point in front of the reflector and behind the lantern lens. "With this construction there is little or no liability of any of the parts being lost or misplaced when required for emergency use, such, for instance, as on occasions when the electric lighting system is inoperative and the emergency requires the immediate lighting of the oil flame, in order that traffic may not be interrupted.

In accordance with the present invention, the oil pot is mounted in a definite position within the lantern, but is adapted to be removed as usual and upon it are mounted the supports for the electric light, and burner for the oil wick, said supports for the electric light and burner being adjustable into or out of the focal position before referred to, that is to say, either one or the other may be shifted to one side and out of the way, orback into proper focal position for oper ation.

Referring to the accompanying drawings,Figure 1 is an isometric perspective of a signal lantern of the standard form with portions of the door or slide broken away to show the internal construction, to get-her with terminals of the wires of the electric lighting system. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of an oil pot adapted to be placed in the lantern shown in Fig. 1 and having thereon the electric light supporting devices and oil burner constructed in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 3 is a section in a vertical plane through the upper portion of the oil pot, said plane intersecting the opening for the oil burner. Fig. 4: is a perspective view of a modified form of electric light holder, and in association therewith a reflector holder, said. parts being adapted to be substituted on the oil pot for the holder and reflector illustrated in Fig. 2.

Similar letters of reference in the several figures indicate the same parts.

The lantern illustrated in Fig. 1 is one of the standard types of lantern adopted for railroad signal use and embodies generally a casing A having at the front a lens B and at one side a vertically sliding door C, which when closed forms one side of the casing. This lantern is adapted for the reception of an oil pot of the general shape shown at D in Fig. 2, but ordinarily the oil pot is removed from the lantern and an electric light substituted, said light being usually suspended by a holder extending down through the top of the lantern. In accordance with the present invention, however, the oil pot D is adapted to be mounted in the lantern at all times, save when removed for cleaning, filling or repair, and both the electric light holding devices and oil burning devices are located on the oil pot itself. To permit of the shifting of the oil burning devices, the burner is mounted on a disk or slide E, preferably journaled on a vertical pin or rivet e mounted in the top of the oil pot, and the said top of the oil pot is cutaway to form an arc-shaped slot or opening (Z through which the collar or ring E of the burner may project. To prevent the escape of oil, as well as to form a strong and tight where a single standard structure, the slide or disk E is preferably located between a cover plate F, and the top D of the oil pot, said covering plate F having formed in it an arc-shaped slot or opening f corresponding to the opening cl in the oil pot top. With this construction the burner ring E may be swung either to one side as shown in Fig. 2, or back to a central position, which substantially corresponds to the position occupied by the filament of the electric light in said Fig. 2, or the said burner may be swung to a position in front of that occupied by the electric light, as will be readily understood from an inspection of the drawing. The burner itself is of any usual or preferred type, the particular burner illustrated being a standard form now in common use.

The electric light support is preferably removably mounted on the oil pot, and for this purpose parallel sockets G are formed on the upper surface of the oil pot, and adapted for the reception of the standards which support both the electric light and the deflector. As illustrated in Fig. 1, an arch frame H is provided having its two ends positioned for entering the sockets G, said frame being adapted to support between its members the usual fresnal reflector I. On the top of the frame H there is pivotally mounted so as to swing transversely a clip K adapted to be held in adjusted position by a set screw Z: and to itself form a socket or clip for the electric light supporting arm L. The arm L is adapted to be adjusted through the clip and to be held in position by a set screw L while at its outer end it is provided with an arc-shaped or semi-circular seat M against which the electric light socket N may be seated and held by a yoke O, the ends of which are passed through a cross piece Z on the arm L and confined by nuts or adjustable fastenings Z. This means for securing the socket in position will hold the electric light socket very rigidly, permits it to be adjusted vertically, and is of such construction that it is not liable to be disarranged by the unskilled labor intrusted with the duty of cleaning the signal lamps.

While the arch frame having two standards for supporting the electric light, as shown in Fig. 2, is preferred, owing to the greater rigidity of the structure it is obvious that the said light may be supported by a single standard, upon which the arm may be swung into and out of operative position, and this construction is illustrated in Fig. 4,

P is provided having its upper end made circular for the re ception of the inner end of a light supporting arm Q, which is adapted to be swung upon the standard in a horizontal plane and to be held in adjusted position by a set screw 9. The outer end vided with a cross piece Z which correof the arm is pro sponds to the cross piece L and a semicircular seat Z which corresponds to the seat M of Fig. 2-. In this construction also, the lens I is mounted on a single standard I which i aclaptedto be seated in one of the sockets G while the standard P is seated in Y the other socket G. The standard P is entirely separate from the reflector, but is shown in Fig. 4 in its proper operative relation thereto. This construction has some advantages in that it permit-s of the reflector being separately removed, should it be desired to utilize the lantern for display 111 opposite directions, and permit-s of the more ready removal and renewal of the reflector should the same be broken.

In the usual use of the lantern with the system in perfect working order the electric light is mounted at the proper focal point, as shown in Fig. 2, while the oil burner is turned ofl to one side and out of the way. Should the electric lighting system fail for any reason, the burner is turned forward far enough to permit of the electric light being swung off to one side and entirely out of the way of the burner so that the latter may be turned back to the focal position formerly occupied by the electric light, when it may be lighted and the signal lantern used just as though no interruption in the operation of the system had occurred. With this construction of lantern it is entirely practicable to keep the oil pot filled and ready for use, and in fact the oil burner, together with its globe, may be left assembled ready for use, should an emergency occur. i

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. In a signal lantern, the combination with the lantern body, oil pot removably mounted therein and upwardly extending standard carried by the oil pot, of an arm pivotally mounted on a vertical axis on the standard to project forwardly over the oil pot or to'turn to one side thereof, an electric lamp socket carried by said arm and arranged in vertical position when the arm is in operative position over the oil pot and an oil burner movable laterally on the oil pot,whereby either the electric light or the oil burner may be brought to the focal point without moving the oil pot.

2. In a signal lantern, the combination with the lantern body and oil pot removably mounted tehrein in fixed position, of an electric lamp supporting frame mounted on the oil pot, an arm pivotally mounted on said frame to swing in a horizontal plane, and an oil burner movably mounted on said oil pot, whereby either the electric light or the oil burner may be moved into focal position without moving the oil pot.

3. In a signal lantern, the combination with the body of the lantern having an oil pot removably mounted therein in fixed position, of a movable electric light support, and a movable oil burner both mounted on said oil pot and movable at will with relation to the oil pot in intersecting lines to bring either light to the focal position.

4t. In a signal lantern, the combination with the body of the lantern and oil pot removably mounted therein in fixed position, of an electric light support and an oil burner support both movably mounted on the oil pot to swing horizontally into or out of focal position centrally over the oil pot.

5. In a signal lantern, the combination with the lantern body and oil pot removably mounted therein, of a disk journaled on the top of the oil pot, an oil burner holder mounted on said disk at one side of its axis, and an electric light support mounted on an axis to swing into position over or to one side of the oil pot.

6. In a signal lantern, the combination with a lantern body and oil pot removably mounted therein, said oil pot having an arcshaped opening in its top, of a disk ournaled on said top at the axis of the opening,

an oil burner support mounted in the disk and projecting through the opening, where by the burner may be swung into or out of focal position, and an electric light support embodying a standard mounted on the oil pot, and a laterally swinging arm carried by the standard with means whereby said arm may be held in adjusted position.

7. In a signal lantern, the combination with the lantern body and oil pot removably mounted therein and having a laterally movable oil burner mounted on its top portion, of an electric light support embodying a standard removably mounted on the oil pot, a laterally movable arm carried by the standard, and a lamp socket clamp mounted on the arm, whereby either the 45 lamp or burner may be moved laterally into or out of the central focal position.

CHARLES AMBROSE THOMPSON. DAVID PIERCE.

\Vitnesses FELIX P. SULLIVAN, F. HERBERT PREM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, I). G. 

